The King Is Coming!

The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

Year A

Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17; Psalm 23; 1 Corinthians 15:20-26, 28; Matthew 25:31-46

 

"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him.  And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.”
Matthew 25:31, 32

While the coronavirus and the election continue to dominate the headlines, the Church had another bout with heartache recently as the report about Theodore McCarrick was released from the Vatican.  If you have been blissfully ignorant about the situation, it became apparent in recent years that McCarrick, who had risen to the position of Cardinal Archbishop, had been involved in a number of moral indiscretions, some of which involved minors, but most involved the abuse and manipulation of his own seminarians.  Men who were answering the call of God to become holy priests were being compromised.  McCarrick was defrocked and has been allowed to live out his remaining days in obscurity, if not infamy.  One hopes for true penitence in the heart of this man. 

His situation reminds us that no matter what people may look like on the outside, or how powerful or influential they become, we all have our date at the judgment seat of Christ where we will give an account of our life to the only true, impartial, and just judge in the universe.  Today’s reading reminds us of this event.

As the Church year draws to a close we see Jesus as He appears in the Revelation.  He is the glorious, conquering King who comes, as the Creed says, to judge the living and the dead; and of His kingdom there will be no end.  Our Lord’s judgment is just.  It is final.  And it is perpetual. 

I have often heard people say, “I don’t like all that hellfire and brimstone preaching”.  And the question I want to ask in return is “When was the last time you heard any.”  We have become soft on sin, which makes judgment outdated, and damnation positively unthinkable. 

One of the reasons we don’t understand judgment is because we don’t understand sin.  We think that everyone sins and nobody is perfect so what’s the big deal?  But to sin against an infinite God is, to an extent, to sin infinitely.  Think about that for a moment and you are on your way to beginning to understand why it’s a big deal.  This is what makes redemption so powerful and so wonderful.

Rather than leave us to our fate our Lord Jesus Christ became human in order to save all of humanity.  So it was that we could see that He really would rather die than to live without us.  Nevertheless, in spite of such a magnanimous effort, He has left us to decide for ourselves whether or not we will receive His offer of salvation or reject it so we can have the passing pleasures of sin.

Today’s Gospel reading reveals a number of things that are vital.  First, that our Lord Jesus Christ is no longer the humble carpenter of the Gospels but the conquering King of the Revelation.  Second, He is the judge of all.   Third, that He will judge us by our works.  And finally, that there is eternal reward or punishment depending on the outcome.  Let’s explore this further.

As we have noted, our Lord Jesus Christ is King of the Universe.  However, the great majority of the world appears to be in ignorance or denial.  But there will come a day- known to God alone- when He will return as He promised. At that point all time stops and we will all give an account for how we have lived to that moment.  This is exactly the same thing that happens if we die before His return.  The difference being that after death we face the Particular Judgment where we are one on one with the Lord and at the end of time will be the General Judgment, which, as we see in today’s Gospel, will involve everyone.

The Lord will judge us by our works.  Here the Lord judges by how we have treated the poor and the outcasts.  But it’s not an exhaustive list.  It’s illustrative.  Mercy, compassion, love, charity, etc. demonstrate a heart given to God.  The opposite shows a heart still ruled by self.  The Lord will judge us by our works to show us the true state of our hearts.  True, there are those who can perform works of charity for the wrong reasons.  But then, as I said, this is not an exhaustive list.  In other areas their true heart will be shown.

The only people who will be going to heaven are saints.  These are the ones who have believed in our Lord Jesus Christ and come to love Him.  They are not yet perfect, but they are on the road and they have entered on a life of grace through faith and baptism.

Those who have no interest in God will not be forced to be with Him and worship Him forever, which is what will be taking place in  heaven.  These will find their rightful place in hell.  In the midst of such overwhelming love and grace, they have sneered at God and mocked Him to His face.  Self-centered, they have spent their lives in pursuit of their own pleasures.  They will receive their just due in the end.

I certainly do not write those words with any sense of relish or smugness.  Actually, quite the opposite.  They are fearful to ponder.  But they are the reality and perhaps if people hear it they will have a change of heart and turn before it’s too late.

Fundamentalism?  Fear mongering?  No!  It is the Gospel of Jesus Christ, plain and simple. 

Please remember, the Lord’s judgment is eternal.  We will either be in heavenly bliss or hellish torment forever.  This is the message from today’s Gospel.

Why did Jesus tell us this story?  These were some of His final words before He went to the cross.  It’s the last great teaching recorded in Matthew’s Gospel.  The stakes are high and our Lord wants us to have the whole story so we can make an informed decision.  He longs for our salvation, but He will not force it on us.

Some may say, “Well if that’s how God is then I don’t want Him”.  How foolish!  We are in no place to judge God.  We have nothing to offer and nothing with which to bargain.  Don’t gamble your soul away because your pride got the best of you.  Rather, listen to the heart of love which beckons you to come home.

The final words of this Gospel and, for our purposes, the final words of the Church year are sobering. “And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."  What will you do?  Choose today because none of us are guaranteed tomorrow.